1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates in general to electrical powered vehicles and, more particularly, to an electrical power unit for two-wheel vehicles.
2. Description of the Prior Art
Two-wheel vehicles of the type using a gasoline engine as a drive source are mainly available at present. However, two-wheel vehicles of the type using an electric motor as a drive source are required in large urban areas and on a lot of traffic highways where the exhaust gases are predominant. Thus, in view of environmental protection and also in view of resources conservation, the trend in two-wheel vehicles development is to design power units actuated by electricity in place of existing two-wheel vehicles that use gasoline.
A main shortcoming encountered in the development of electric driven two-wheel vehicles resides in the requirement of large consumption of electricity at start. Rotary electric machines with flat stator armature oil and two rotors having magnets disposed in opposite relationship to the coil are known. The main disadvantage of these rotary electric machines resides in the fact that they use a one-loop winding that provide a starting low torque.
Common batteries with aqueous or nonaqueous electrolytes perform poorly in environments colder than their lowest operational temperatures, because the electrolytes freeze and/or become viscous with consequent degradation of ion-transport properties. Furthermore, for example, when an engine starts, the battery must produce high voltage energy and this becomes critical in cold weather when the resistance in the battery increases and the voltage is lower.
Conventional battery heating systems typically use a separate power source to supply energy to a heating element that generates the required heat. The resultant heat is then transferred to the battery by either a convection system or a conduction system. Convection systems blow hot air across the battery, whereas conduction systems apply heat directly to the surface of the battery. Warm air heating requires complex mechanical systems that use substantial amount of external power. This constraint limits the portability of batteries and demands the availability of an external separate power source for heating the battery.
Systems employing thermal jackets usually include flexible insulators that wrap around of batteries. The thermal jackets must also be powered by separate power sources and require substantial amounts of energy.
There are very many patents related to two-wheel electrical vehicles. The inventor believes that those patents taken alone or in combination neither anticipate nor render obvious the present invention.
There is accordingly a need for an electric power unit for two-wheel vehicles that overcomes the disadvantages of the known types of electric two-wheel vehicles.
It is therefore an objective of the present invention to provide an electric power unit for two-wheel vehicles with a heated batteries housing for enhancing the voltage at low temperatures, at start.
It is a further objective of the present invention to provide rotary electrical motors with high torques at start, when inertia forces must be surmounted.
It is yet another objective of the present invention to provide a reliable system for controlling the speed of a two-wheel vehicle.
Accordingly, the present invention is directed to an electric power unit for two-wheel vehicles comprising a batteries housing from which current is supplied to a DC magnetic motor that is connected to a controller assembly, and a chain transmission driven by the DC magnetic motor adapted to actuate a driven wheel of a two-wheel vehicle. The latter has a frame to which the electrical power unit for two-wheel vehicles is attached.
The batteries housing incorporates a structure having two outwardly open compartments between which a hollow zone is interposed. Each of the two outwardly open compartments is divided in several partitions. Each of the several partitions is adaptable to receive one of several rechargeable batteries that is provided with terminals for contacting a wiring. Each of the two outwardly open compartments is provided with air channels for heating the several rechargeable batteries. The air channels for heating the several rechargeable batteries are located in the two outwardly open compartments, in and adjacent their walls, as follows: a) in a top and bottom walls and in a pair of second lateral walls, and open towards the several partitions, and b) adjacent a first lateral wall, for forming upper and lower passages.
The DC magnetic motor with speed control comprises a stator including several alternating, equally spaced, permanent magnets, which form a pair of parallel, concentric discs and a rotor including a central armature in a disc form, with two-loop windings and an even number of commuter segments. The commuter segments with odd ordinal numbers form first loop windings. The commuter segments with even ordinal numbers form second loop windings. Several brushes are disposed in a conventional holder that is concentrically affixed to the rotor. Half of the several brushes are used for starting the DC magnetic motor, while another half are used for regular functioning.
The controller assembly incorporates a Central Processing Unit and a Pulse Width Modulator Motor Speed Controller.